Intel to unveil new chip process

Intel Corp. said Wednesday it has found a breakthrough way to insulate transistors that could solve one of the semiconductor industry's most fundamental problems: how to make computer chips ever-smaller while preventing them from losing power and throwing off heat.

As semiconductor manufacturers design microprocessors packed more densely with transistors, those components, which are the fundamental building blocks of computer chips, also are prone to leak electrical current, much like a dripping faucet.